New NIH Program to Fund Exceptionally Innovative Research

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 24, 2007

Contact:
Susan Athey
301-496-7301

The National Institutes of Health announces a new program to fund exceptionally innovative research that, if successful, will have an unusually high impact. The program, called EUREKA (for Exceptional, Unconventional Research Enabling Knowledge Acceleration), targets investigators who are testing novel, unconventional hypotheses or are pursuing major methodological or technical challenges. The potential impact of the proposed research must be substantial in terms of both the size of the scientific community affected and the magnitude of its impact on the community.

Features of the EUREKA program include direct costs of up to $800,000 over 4 years and a specialized R01 application focusing on significance and innovation.

The National Institute of General Medical Sciences anticipates making between 13-17 awards under this program in Fiscal Year 2008. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases plan to fund additional awards.

The application receipt date for the EUREKA program is October 24, 2007. To view the full funding opportunity announcement, see http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-GM-08-002.html. More information on the EUREKA program is available at http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Research/Mechanisms/EUREKA.htm.